Attachment for pens



(No Model.) I

J. G. JORDAN. ATTACHMENT FOR PENS.

No. 588,865. Patenfed-Aug. 24, 1897.

UNITED STATES PATENT DFFTCE.

JAMES G. JORDAN, DES MOINES, IOWVA.

" ATTACHMENT FoR PENS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 588,865, dated August 24, 1897. Application filed December 18, 1893. Serial No. 493,996. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES G. JORDAN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Des Moines, county of Polk, and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Attachment for Pens, of which the following is a specification.

My invention consists in the application to a metallic pen of common form a fountain or reservoir of improved design, by which a larger quantity of ink than could be retained in the pen itself can be carried, said fountain or reservoir being of such form as to possess substantial advantages in construction and use over any form of fountain attachment heretofore known.

The mannerin which I have accomplished this improvement is that described in this specification, set out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which-- Figure 1 shows my attachment upon a pen in position for use. Fig. 2 is a side view of the same form of attachment separate from the pen. Fig. 3 is a top view of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a bottom view of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional View on the line X X of Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is an enlarged transverse sectional view on the line Y Y of Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is a plan View of the blank of sheet metal from which the form of attachment shown in Fig. 2 is made.

In the construction shown in Figs. 1 to 6, inclusive, and which by me is deemed the preferable form of my device, the numerals 10 and 11 designate the penholder proper, which may be of any of the common forms now in use. The pen 12, of any desired pattern, is inserted in the said holder in the ordinary manner.

The fountain attachment, the s object of my improvement,consists of a hollow cone-shaped portion 13, having in its convex surface near its apex a small aperture 15, and on the same side with said aperture a shank 14, formed integrally therewith, as shown in the drawing of the blank, Fig. 7 from which said attachment is made, said shank affording a means of securing the attachment in the penholder in contact with the pen 12.

In use the above-described attachment is inserted in a penholder with the aperture 15 contiguous to the slit between the nibs of the pen, the. shank 14 being in contact with the shank portion of the pen and firmly held in such position by the jaws of the holder. The said attachment may be placed either under the penthat is,against its concave surfaceor upon the upper or convex surface; but for reasons hereinafter given at length the first position, that under the pen, is preferable.

In manufacture this attachment is formed by punching or cutting from steel metal a blank of a shape adapted to be bent into the form desired and then bending said blank into the form to whichit is obviously adapted. The edges of the blank,which when bent contact with each other to complete the convex surface of the conical portion, may be soldered or brazed together, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4, or left without further treatment, depending solely upon the natural set of the metal to hold them together. However, as it is of importance that these edges be as perfectly joined together as to prevent air passing between them a complete metallic union, such as that effected by soldering or brazing, is preferable.

In the manufacture of forms of this attachment designed to be used under the pen that is, within the concavity of the latterit is preferable that after the forming of the cone be completed, as above described, the said cone be flattened somewhat on the side opposite the shank 14 and aperture 15, that the lower surface of the cone-shaped portion 13 may be farther away from the paper when the pen is in use, thus lessening the liability of accidental blotting of the work.

I do not broadly claim the use of an inkreservoir adapted to be secured upon a pen, as I am aware the use of such in certainforms is old; but I do claim the specific form of ink reservoir or fountain attachment herein described as new and as differing in substantial particulars from any heretofore known, and by which differencein design the operation of such attachment is rendered more satisfactory than any heretofore put in use.

In the design of ink-reservoir shown herewith, particularly that illustrated in Figs. 1 to 6, inclusive, I have met the desiderata of a successful fountain attachment for common forms of metallic pens, in that I have provided means for carrying on the pen a much greater quantity of ink than would adhere to the pen alone, said means beingindependent of the pen itself, as readily adaptable to one shape of pen as another, certain and reliable in operation, affording little opportunity for ink to dry within the attachment, thereby rendering it useless, and all these advantages without affecting in anyway the degree of flexibility or any other property possessed by the pen upon which its excellence for given work depends, whereas with all forms of fountain attachments heretofore introduced with the advantage of carrying more ink there has been brought one or more of the disadvantages above alluded to and which have in large measure curtailed the useful ness and commercial value of thcalleged improvement.

It will be seen on examination of the drawings that this attachment is normally held in contact with the under or concave side of the pen, the aperture 15 contiguous to tl1eslit be tween the nibs of the said pen, and with said aperture nortnally closed or closely covered by said nibs. The filling of the fountain is accomplished by dipping the pen as deeply into the ink as to cause the latter to flow in at the open end of the hollow cone. Vhen mounted in this manner, it is plain that the use of the attachment in no way affects the flexibilityof the pen, amatterof no small importance to writers accustomed to a pen of a given style and degree of flexibility. In the use of a pen thus furnished, on the down stroke with pressure when a shaded line is desired, the nibs of the pen are drawn slightly away from the apex of the conical attachment, thus affording a freer flow of ink, and on up strokes, which are unifortnlylight, the nibs are held closely over the feed-aperture, thus allowing but a small flow of ink to the paper, the flow thus adjusting itself automatically and regulating itself wholly by weight of line which the writer desires. Besides, all flow ofink,save whatlittle adheres to the outer surfaces of the pen and attachment in the process of dipping, and which serves to help the continuity of flow on the upstrokes, is through the small aperture near the apex of the conical reservoir, which causes a relatively rapid flow through said aperture and prevents the same from clogging by ink drying therein; and when the pen is not in use, though the said fountain may be full or partially full of ink, the ink in the aperture will not clog by drying, as, owing to it being covered bythe nibs of the pen, exposure to the air is impossible. The edges of the blank when formed into a cone. being perfectly joined, as ltereinbefore alluded to, it will be seen that the only exposed surface of the body of ink held in the fountain is that at the base of the cone, and which as compared to the volume of ink so carried is small, which construction is of material advantage in preventing ink from drying in the attachment. It has been found in the practical use of this device that ink does not easily dry therein, but remains fluid and in condition for ready flow after long periods of disuse of the pen, an advantage due to the peculiar shape of the ink-reservoir, with its outlet normally closely covered by the nibs of the pen and none of the surface of the ink exposed save that at the base of the cone, as above noted. It will be observed that these advantages do not in any way depend upon the shape of the pen for their existence, but are entirely independent of that and only to be had through the exact construction and shape of parts which I have designed and as herein set forth. Any form of ink-reservoir formed by the space ittcludcd between an attachment to the pen and the pen itself is subject to variation in proportions with every change in pattern of pen used with said attachment, and, moreover, by the very nature of the case ink must be exposed and subject to the drying action of the air throughout the whole line of more or less itnperfect contact between pen and attachment, soon rendering nugatory an y advantages the said attachment may have had when first applied, and obviously it is commercially impracticable to furnish attachments specially adapted to each particular form of pen, which forms another serious objection to ink-fountains of this sort.

Again, owing to the position in which my attachment is preferably used with reference to the nibs of a pen, no abnormal pressure is put on said pen-nibs, and the pen is left with all the characteristics of flexibility and ease of movement it had when it left the makers hands, which cannot be said of a pen to which is applied any form of ink-fountain bearing down upon or held against its convex surface.

It is obvious that this improved form of inkfountain may be as readily secured to the shank of the pen itself by soldering or brazing, and such a construction will in some instances be preferable. As with gold pens, through which there is no central perforation and which are non-corrosive and so practically indestructible, this attachment may be soldered on the shank far enough rearward of the nibs as not to affect the flexibility of the pen, in which case the ink-fountain would form a part of the pen itself as an article of manufacture. This form of construction would be of further advantage with gold pens, as such pens are sometimes furnished with metallic holders fitting the shank of the pen so closely as to prevent the insertion of the shank of the fountain attachment therewith. Besides, both pen and fountain attachment being made of non-corrosive metal and fitted to each other by the pen-maker, a neat and permanently satisfactory article could be made, or it may be advantageous to make and furnish these ink-fountains as an article of manufacture without shanks adapted to be inserted into penholders with the pens to which they are attached, furnishing said simpie forms of ink-fountains to jewelers and the trade to be secured on such pens as may be called for. These forms clearly come within the scope'of myinvention, which consists, essentially, of a hollow cone with an aperture in one side thereof near its apex, said aperture being positioned contiguous to the slit between the nibs of the pen upon which said attachment is secured and not limited to a particular method of fastening so long as said specific form of fountain proper is used.

Having thus described my invention,what I claim as new therein, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States therefor, is-

1. An attachment for pens comprising a hollow conical portion adapted for location .within the concavity of a pen, and provided with a single aperture in one side near its apex, a shank formed of yielding non-elastic material substantiallyas described integrally connected to the hollow conical portion and projecting therefrom in alinement with the v side thereof in which the vent is located.

a hollow conical portion having a single aperture in one side near its apex, and a shank on the same side formed integrally therewith, said shank being so shaped as to be inserted into the end of a penholder conjunctively with a pen of common form.

3. In an ink-fountain attachment for pens, a hollow conical portion having a single aperture in one side near its apex, a shank on the same side formed integrally therewith, said hollow conical portion being slightly flattened on the side opposite the shank and aperture named, substantially as shown and described.

4:. As a new article of manufacture, a pen having secured thereto an ink-fountain atta'chment consisting of a hollow conical portion having an aperture in one side near its apex, said cone being flattened somewhat on the side opposite said aperture and the aperture in said cone positioned contiguous to the slit between the nibs of said pen.

JAMES G. JORDAN. -In presence of- M. WILKINSON, LIZZIE KEHOE. 

